1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to global computer networks and, in particular, to a system and method for notifying a user, who is not logged onto a global computer network, of interactions occurring on the global computer network in which the user could participate.
2. Background of the Invention
Individuals and businesses depend on the Internet for communication. Of the various forms of Internet communication, electronic mail (“e-mail”) is undoubtedly the most prevalent form today. Every day, Internet users send each other billions of emails. In fact, industry analysts predict that, by 2005, the average daily volume of emails sent around the world will reach 35 billion.
In a traditional e-mail system, when a user sends an e-mail message to a recipient, the e-mail message is routed to the e-mail server of the recipient. The e-mail server maintains a file for the recipient and appends the e-mail message to this file. The recipient can then check his e-mail by accessing this file. If the recipient is online when the user sends the message and has e-mail software that provides notification of incoming e-mail messages, then the recipient can access the file and retrieve the e-mail message soon after the message is delivered. However, often the recipient is not online, does not have incoming e-mail notification, or elects not to open the e-mail message right away. In these cases, the e-mail message remains in the recipient's file indefinitely.
The conventional e-mail systems therefore lack an immediate access to the recipient. In contrast to telephone communications, in which a caller knows immediately whether or not he has contacted the called party, a sender of e-mail does not know if the recipient has read the e-mail until he receives some type of affirmative response. Thus, for Internet users desiring instantaneous, confirmed communication with other users, e-mail presents obvious disadvantages.
Unified messaging services partially address this lack of immediate access. These services can monitor a user's e-mail account and notify the user when an e-mail message is received. The notification can be through one-way pagers, two-way interactive pagers, facsimile transmissions, or automated telephone calls to wireline or wireless telephones. UREACH.COM™ is one example of this type of messaging service. Notably, of particular relevance to the present invention, these unified messaging services only provide a user with notification of a received e-mail message, and do not establish an online real-time interaction between the e-mail recipient and the sender of the e-mail message.
Recognizing e-mail's drawbacks with respect to immediate contact, service providers have developed other communication tools that support instantaneous online communications, more akin to telephone conversations. Chat rooms, game sites, and instant messaging services are three examples of this type of communication tool, each of which is discussed individually below. Each of these tools connects online users with other online users to support real-time communication.
A chat room is a site on a global computer network (e.g., a web site on the Internet), a part of a site, or a part of an online service that enables a group of users to send messages that are seen instantaneously by everyone in the chat room. A chat room is generally organized for a community of users sharing a common interest or association. As examples, popular chat rooms of AMERICA ONLINE™ include Health Chat, International Chat, Hockey Chat, and Computing Chat.
To participate in a chat room, a user first registers with the site operating the chat room by providing both a user name and password. The user then logs into the chat room. Once inside, the site displays to the user a list of people who are currently logged into the chat room. The list identifies each person by his or her user name. The site also alerts the users already in the chat room when a new person has entered. To enter the discussion, users type a message into a text box. The site then immediately displays the message in a larger communal message area for viewing by the other participants.
In these conventional chat rooms, users must log in and enter a room to determine who is participating at any given time. Outside of checking individual rooms, a user has no way of determining when other users are logged into a chat room. Thus, if a user is only interested in entering chat rooms having a large number of participants (who are presumably generating a lively discussion), the user must still take the trouble to enter each site to view the participant list. In addition, if a user is interested in chatting with particular users, the user must enter random chat rooms looking for those users, without any clue as to which room the particular users are in or whether the particular users are online at all. In this respect, a user would prefer to receive information concerning chat room activity before having to log in and check the participant list.
Like chat rooms, game sites require that users be online and logged in before making any connection between two players. Thus, if a first player enjoys the competition of another particular player, the first player must wait online until he sees the other particular player log in. Or, alternatively, the players must coordinate with each other to meet online at a certain time. This coordination can itself involve several messages back and forth, and a sometimes-tedious exercise of working out a mutually acceptable time. Instead of this protracted coordination, the first player would prefer to contact the other player while the first player is online and receive an immediate indication as to whether the other player is available to log on and play a game.
As another form of instantaneous online communication, instant messaging is essentially a chat room for two people. This service enables a user to easily determine whether another particular user, such as a friend or co-worker, is connected to the Internet, and, if that other particular user is connected, to exchange messages with him in real-time. Unlike e-mail, instant messaging provides online real-time discussion because both users are online and receive the instant messages automatically (e.g., in a pop-up window) without having to retrieve them.
To use instant messaging, both users must be online at the same time and have their instant messaging software set to accept messages from each other. If a user attempts to send a message to another user who is not online or who is not accepting instant messaging, the instant messaging service returns a notification to the sender indicating that the message transmission cannot be completed. If both users are online and are accepting messages, then the users remain constantly connected to their instant messaging service. Through this constant connection, users receive the messages as quickly as the data can travel through the network, thereby avoiding the less immediate storage and downloading of data that is associated with e-mail communication.
In the operation of an instant messaging service, when a user logs on to the service, the instant messaging software on the user's computer reports to the instant messaging server that the user is available to receive messages. The server then downloads to the user's computer a list of users who are currently online and logged into the instant messaging service. This list, referred to herein as a “buddy list,” associates a group of users (i.e., buddies) who have agreed to accept instant messages from each other. A user creates the buddy list upon registration with the instant messaging service and can edit it at any time thereafter.
The buddy list indicates which users in the buddy group are online, typically by listing the user names of those users in an online section of the display. The names of the remaining users are listed in an offline section. The instant messaging service moves the names back and forth as the users log on and off. Thus, a user who is online can continually view the online status of his associated buddies.
Much like chat rooms, instant messaging services require that users be online and logged into the instant messaging service at the same time. If a user wants to correspond with a buddy who is not online, the user must wait and monitor the buddy list until he sees that the buddy has logged on. The user could contact the buddy by some other means, such as e-mail. This approach, however, interrupts the user's online session and burdens the user with having to launch a separate e-mail application, and compose and send a message. Moreover, if the buddy is not logged into the instant messaging service, then the buddy is probably not online, making the sending of an e-mail message pointless.
The user may also try to reach the buddy by telephone. However, the user may be accessing the Internet through his only telephone line, requiring the user to terminate his Internet session just to place a telephone call to his buddy. In any case, the user must expend additional time and possibly money (e.g., long distance telephone charges) trying to reach the buddy by telephone.
The shortcomings of instant messaging are further apparent when considering a user who is the first to log on out of all the users listed on his buddy list. After logging on, this first user has no one with whom to exchange messages and no easy way to alert his buddies that he is online and wanting to correspond.
Similarly, if nearly all users of a buddy list are online and are carrying on multiple two-way discussions with each other, the remaining users who are offline have no way to know that they are missing the opportunity to correspond with everyone. Instant messaging services do not provide notification to offline users to bring those users into the online interaction.